FORT WORTH, Texas -- The John Brown men's basketball team opened up the second half on a 13-6 run to pull within three points, but a difficult first-half shooting effort was too much to overcome as the Golden Eagles fell at Texas Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon, 77-54, inside the Sid Richardson Center.
Junior DJ Ellis hit a pair of triples while senior Luke Harper added another in the first four minutes of the second half to pull John Brown (11-8, 5-6 Sooner Athletic) within three, 35-32. Later, with just over 14 minutes left, sophomore Noah Taylor's triple closed the gap to one, 40-39, but the Rams (15-4, 8-3) would never find a chance to pull ahead.
The Golden Eagles were then limited to one field goal over the next eight minutes while Texas Wesleyan pulled away to a 15-point advantage before extending the gap further down the stretch.
"We played hard today and really fought against a big Wesleyan team," said JBU coach Jason Beschta. "Ira (Perrier) did such an incredible job guarding much bigger players and drawing several fouls on them. Our other guards cut off several drives taking some gutsy charges, but they just proved to be too much inside today.
"We had some really good possessions on offense moving the ball and getting great looks, but we struggled to knock them down today. This is a special group that is tough and skilled. We will keep pushing, keep improving and keep believing in each other."
Harper's 17 points paced the John Brown offense while senior Ira Perrier added 11 points on 5 of 6 shooting on the day. He also grabbed six of JBU's 21 rebounds.
The Rams dominated the boards, 37-21, and shot more than 50 percent for the afternoon (25-of-48). While JBU recovered with a 42 percent efficiency in the second half, it mired through a 25 percent accuracy in the first half.
Vydal Bradford led all scorers with 28 points and nine rebounds for Texas Wesleyan. Kristan Lafayette turned in a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
The Golden Eagles will return to the court Thursday when they welcome Langston (Okla.) to Bill George Arena for a 7:45 p.m. contest. JBU won the first battle in Langston.
Photo courtesy of Texas Wesleyan John Brown senior Rokas Grabliauskas drives to the basket during Saturday's game against Texas Wesleyan.